Chapter 76 – An Old Acquaintance

I sipped a cup of coffee while leaning against the side of a black SUV. I once more had on a Harbor jacket. The white fabric, marked with streaks of light blue, did a decent job keeping out the rain. Or, it would if Quinn wasn’t right behind me. It was so nice not having to worry about my tail being soaked.

”You’re in a good mood today, huh?” Quinn slammed the driver door shut, and moved around to me. “I take it the circus went well yesterday?”

”It was fantastic!” Even just thinking about it made my tail wag around like a plane about to take off. I lowered my cup as a large, dopey smile filled my face. “You should’ve been there. Ugh! I wish I could go back in time to experience it again.”

”Yeah, well…” Quinn just shook her head, and leaned against her SUV right next to me. She must’ve sold the crappy, beaten up car she’d been driving all these years. I hadn’t seen it in a while. It was kind of sad? “Sucks to be called in on the weekend like this.”

”No kidding.” This morning, just after I made breakfast for Sylvie and I, I got the call from Lieutenant Harkness. I had just started seeing progress with Binding, too. “I thought we were supposed to be off cases like this since we’re with the academy?”

”We didn’t have our weekly practical exam.” Quinn shrugged halfheartedly. “Probably a punishment.”

“Maybe…” Still, I couldn’t help but feel something was off. We couldn’t have our exam because Harbor itself was busy running through the place we were supposed to use. It totally wasn’t our fault. 

“Most be someone rich.” My Guardian nodded to the building we’d parked at. The building itself was in the northern, richer districts. It towered over its surroundings, and was covered in flashing advertisements for luxury products. An advertisement for Shade Energy’s ShadePhone 18 priced the product at 17,000 credits. Absolutely crazy.

This place even had its own parking lot around back. Not parking garage—parking lot. In a place like Silverport, that was an insane show of wealth. I had a feeling we weren’t here ‘cause just anyone died. “Harkness said it was a heart attack?” 

”Suspected. I don’t know anything more than—“ Quinn cut herself off as the lieutenant himself pushed out the doors facing the parking lot. The both of us instantly straightened. “Lieutenant.”

”Good. You’re here.” Harkness’s baggy eyes dropped down to the coffee cup in my hands. The man looked absolutely exhausted, though a hint of hope sparked in his eyes. “Did you bring me one too?”

“No, sir.” My tail drooped guiltily behind me. “We didn’t know you’d be here.”

“Wish I wasn’t.” He looked between the two of us for a moment. “The city council put some pressure on Harbor to get to the bottom of this one quickly.”

”For a heart attack?” Quinn asked.

”Suspected suicide or poisoning.” Harkness rubbed the back of his head. “They’re doing tox screening now.

“Why? Those are PK things,” Quinn said. The words sounded horribly cold, but she had a point. Harbor only got involved if there was anything anomalous, beyond, magical, or anything in between involved. “Or should I be asking who?”

”Who is definitely the right question.” Harkness sighed, and shook his head. We were all well aware of the way the world worked. 

Quinn popped the back door open, and pulled out an Everdyne Everwake energy drink. “Want this?”

”Please.” Harkness accepted the energy drink like it was some precious treasure. He cracked open the can, and sipped at it. “You just carry these around?”

”My dad sent me a whole crate of them.” Quinn shrugged like it wasn’t anything special. “How’s it taste? That flavor isn’t on the market yet.”

”Like…” He tilted his head to the side, and sipped at it once more. “Cotton candy? A little sweet, but pretty good.”

“Can I have one?” I instantly asked. My tail swished rapidly around behind me. The bitter taste of my coffee couldn’t compare to the sweet, sweet taste of cotton candy. Now that I actually knew what it tasted like, how could I live life without it?

“On the way out.” Quinn locked the door with a soft chuckle. “We don’t want our wolf bouncing off the walls in a crime scene, do we?”

”Ah, no… probably not.” My ears flattened, and my shoulders slumped. She maybe had a point, but she could’ve told me she had a crate of those this whole time.

Harkness moved toward the door, and politely held it open for the two of us. “You’re looking good, Reyna. Are you recovering okay?”

”Yes, thank you.” I took a sip from my steaming coffee once more as we stepped into an elevator off to the side of the apartment building’s grand entry. I didn’t get much sleep last night. Even after I had to stop practicing Binding thanks to running low on psions. Every attempt felt like glass stabbing into my brain.

”Sleep is an important part of recovery.” He leaned against the back wall of the elevator. It was a mirror speckled with gold. “Probably doesn’t mean much coming from me.”

”I’m fully recovered, Lieutenant.” I still felt a little weak from the Reaprat poison, but I was in much better condition. Almost fully healed, I’d say.

I eyed Harkness. He was always… weird to me. Quite frankly, Harbor wasn’t the kind of place you moved up through without power, connections, or corruption. And yet, as far as I could tell, Harkness didn’t have any of the three. He was a Canary before his Guardian died, and still somehow made it to Lieutenant. “Who was it?”

Harkness slowly nodded, and he dropped the energy drink to rest against his waist. ”Professor Arnest, one of the best artists in Silverport. His paintings are hanging everywhere from city hall to museums across the UCS.” 

”D-did you say Arnest?” As in the man I met just a couple nights ago? The man I was planning to sneak into his apartment and flatline in his sleep for what he did to Dustin? That man?

“Yes?” Harkness’s brow lifted. “Why? Did you know him?”

I bit my lip at the stupid slip up, and covered the motion with another sip of coffee. ”Um… no. Just recognized him from exhibits.”

Thankfully, Quinn stole the lieutenant's attention before he could start to ask more questions. “Dad owns a few of his paintings. He’s on the Arcanist Guild council, isn’t he?” 

“He was.” Harkness sipped at his energy drink once more, and his eyes flicked to me. “His personal chef found him dead this morning. The medical examiner’s preliminary report is a heart attack.”

Hades must’ve pulled some strings to put us on this case. Was this a warning from Cerberus? I fucked up the job to find Arnest’s son, so the man died of a broke heart? It’d be just like that spiteful bastard to do something like this. We were pulled away from the Academy job for this one, too. Us getting the job wouldn’t be for just anything.

What, was I supposed to feel bad? Good fucking riddance. That was one more piece of trash taken out of the city before it could contaminate Silverport even further. Though I did feel a little bad for whoever had to find him.

The elevator dinged, and the three of us stepped out directly into a penthouse suite. Two PK in heavy tac gear sat off to the side of the elevator playing a card game. One of them looked up, and nodded at Harkness. “You’re back already?”

”Indded.” Harkness waved behind himself to us. “This is Guardian Tidebreak and Canary Vargriev. They’re the ones assigned to this case.”

”I’ll let the others know.” The guy pulled a radio off his shoulder, and started to speak into it. My ears twitched as several crackles lit up the penthouse suite from all around. “Headquarters called. Still no word on the son, sir.”

“Keep looking. Something about the whole situation is off.” Harkness nodded to us, and led us deeper into the penthouse suite. “They found him in his studio.”

”What’s up with his son?” I asked. Before anything else, I needed to know how much Harbor knew.

”He died Friday night.” He did? No wait, ‘course he did. How did Harbor know about that, though? “Guardian Gravestar dug him out of a Tier-2 Yggdren in a storm sewer far from here.” 

Gravestar? My ears twitched up alertly, and my nose scrunched up in thought. Didn’t recognize him. I wish I had Vigil with me, but I left the plushie behind to look into that trace from his Grail Knight from Friday. We were supposed to go today, but… hopefully this wouldn't take long.

“Gravestar? Good for him.” Quinn chuckled lightly. “Just graduated and already taking down a Tier-2. I thought he wasn’t much at the Academy, but I’m happy to be proven wrong.”

No, no, you were right, Quinn. He wasn’t much more than a pawn of the Hades Syndicate. My tail flicked in annoyance at the thought of this Gravestar guy taking my kill credit. I was more annoyed with the fact Hades had their claws in a newly graduated Guardian, though, to be honest… How though? Unless… did Hades have recruiters in the academy itself?

The distressing thought immediately raised up every interaction I had in the academy to date for inspection. If there was a Hade recruiter there, I needed to dig them out before they could corrupt any other kids into joining the syndicate. I’d have to do it discretely, though. 

“It’s a pretty clear cut case to me, but several people seem to think an Arcanist like him wouldn’t die so young.” Lieutenant Harkness entered a painting studio that reeked of death. “He’s in here.”

Quinn whipped out a handkerchief from her pocket, and raised it to her nose. “Harbor always takes me to the best locations.”

“We try.” Harkness leaned against one of the clean walls. The rest were covered in paintings and paint. “It looked natural to me. You’re some of the best we have at tracking stuff down, though.”

“All thanks to Reyna.” Quinn’s eyes dropped to a section of the carpet marked with white tape where they found the body. “Died there?”

“Looks like it.” I crouched down next to the marked out section. Death reeked. There was no good way to put it. Even without it being a violent death, it still made my nose curl in disgust.

“Where’s the painting?” Quinn asked. While I was busy checking where they found the body, she walked around the studio and stopped at the easel. 

“What painting?” Harkness pushed off the wall, and approached us.

”Well…” She flicked her bob of short blue hair. “I met him a couple times. Arnest was always working on something. He wouldn’t be the type to leave his easel empty for long.”

A cart just next to the easel covered in painting supplies caught my attention. Probably not the best idea to contaminate a potential crime scene. I dipped my finger into the paint anyway. The top layer was already hardened, but the bottom layer was still liquid. “This is still kind of fresh.”

”Right, well, none of those look freshly painted.” Quinn waved her hand to the rows and rows of paintings. “So who came in here and took the painting he was working on?”

”Where’s his paint brush?” I asked back. He had all the paint, but no brush. I dropped down on my knees, and checked under the cart in case it rolled away during his heart attack. Nothing.

“So… not a heart attack?” Harkness asked.

“Still could be.” Suicide or murder weren’t totally out of the question if something was missing from the scene, though. “How are the suicide rates around here?”

”I already checked. They’re average for the area.” Harkness shook his head. It seemed both of our minds immediately went to the same Calamity. “Probably not a Lamentus.”

CE-2004, Lamentus, was infamous for inspiring people to kill themselves. It could be some other Calamity, but none of them matched up with the MO here. “Regardless, we should find whoever originally discovered the body first.”

”It is strange. Why take the painting and not alert someone to his death?” Quinn’s hand tightened on her nose. 

“It could’ve been a thief?” An art thief breaking into an artist's house to steal never before seen paintings wasn’t totally out of the question.

Quinn tapped the easel lightly with her foot. “They must’ve known, or at least been close to the professor, to get in through all of the security. Were any valuables taken from around the penthouse, Harkness?”

”No. The PK had one of the maids walk them through the area, and cross referenced insured items.” The lieutenant nodded to us. “You guys question the chef to see if he knows anything. I’ll see if I can’t pull the apartment building’s security feeds.”

”Is the chef still here?” I asked.

”Last I saw, he was packing his bags upstairs.” Harkness looked around the room one last time, and then moved back toward the elevator. 

“You want to be good cop this time?” Quinn slung her arm over my shoulders, and dragged me out into the main foyer of the place.

”We’re not interrogating the guy, Quinn.” I just sighed and sipped at my coffee once more. Hopefully, it really was just a heart attack due to heartbreak and nothing more.